Dordt University has named Payton Chitwood as head women's soccer coach, bringing leadership experience from Warner University, where he was a two-time Coach of the Year and led teams in a highly competitive conference.
Dordt University has announced the appointment of Payton Chitwood to serve as head women's soccer coach.
"I am excited to announce Payton as our next women's soccer coach. Payton fits what we are looking for in our head coaches and we believe he will lead the program well as it seeks to fulfill the great commission; develop student-athletes academically, develop servant leaders and pursue success in our competitions. It's clear he is a great fit to lead the team at Dordt," said Dordt Director of Athletics Darin Keizer. "He has led the Warner program well in a very competitive league and I look forward to what the Dordt program will look like with his leadership."
Chitwood has been the women's soccer coach at Warner University (Florida) since 2017 and has competed in the Sun Conference which produced the NAIA National Champions in 2024, 2020 and 2019. Chitwood was named the 2024 NCCAA South Region Coach of the Year and he was named the 2018 Sun Conference Coach of the Year. Prior to his time at Warner, Chitwood was an assistant coach at Trinity International (Illinois). He graduated from Trinity International and served as an Assistant Athletic Director of Internal Operations at Warner. Chitwood will begin at Dordt this spring.
"I'm very thankful for the opportunity Dordt has given to me as well as my family to steward the women's soccer program. The experience at Dordt has been phenomenal and I am overjoyed to join in the challenge of pursuing excellence through the structure of the Defender Way. The culture is great within the university and team alike, so I'm excited to help us continue to bring Glory to God through everything we do! A special thanks to my family for their unbelievable support, Dordt Athletic Director Darin Keizer and his team for this process and belief in me as a coach, Dordt President Erik Hoekstra for his clear vision and articulation about Dordt and building into me already through this time and several others that have poured into me professionally and relationally. May the Lord be glorified and be the motivation behind everything moving forward!" said Chitwood.
The 2024 Dordt women's team finished the regular season with a 12-5-1 record and was 7-3-1 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The program has won at least 10 games in each of the last four seasons and earned a spot in the GPAC Championship game in 2023 and the Semifinals in 2024.
For more information, visit godordt.com.
About Dordt University
As an institution of higher education committed to the Reformed Christian perspective, Dordt University equips students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all aspects of contemporary life. Located in Sioux Center, Iowa, Dordt is a comprehensive university named to the best college lists by the Wall Street Journal, Times Higher Education, Forbes.com, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review.
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